My 1994 Evinrude 3.0 hp has a problem. If I try to run the motor above half or 3/4 throttle the motor revs out but the prop doesn't. It acts the same as when the prop gets fouled with weeds even when there are no weeds. I bought the motor new and this just started happening last year (right after I ran up onto a sandbar :o ).

The shear pin is fine, and I replaced the rubber insert in the prop hub in case that was slipping but that didn't help. I marked the parts in the prop hub to see if there was slippage but the marks stayed aligned so it isn't slipping there. I wonder if the gears in the lower unit are shot, but it seems like I would hear some horrendous sounds if that were the case. Is there some sort of clutch that might need replacing? Is it better to replace the entire lower unit? If so, is that a job that I can do myself?

FWIW, the guy at the marina where I bought the motor could not diagnose the problem from my description and I am hesitant to bring it in for "exploratory surgery".

Thanks for any and all info!

Q

John Desjardins

06-15-2004 12:05 AM

Q, from things I've observed fixing small equipment.
Drain the oil in the lower end and run the oil through a coffee filter in a funnel. If you sheared off teeth from a gear you will have chunks of metal in the filter.

Double check the shear pin.

Hawkeye

06-15-2004 02:53 PM

Two years ago we spun out two hubs and what you describe exactly matches the symptoms we experienced right down to hitting the sand.

Quentin

06-15-2004 10:14 PM

Gregg, glad to hear it's not a unique problem, as the guy at the Marina would have me think ("Hmm, never heard of that happening with these motors :confused: "). So what do I need to do to fix it?

John, when I drained the gearcase lube after this started happening I did check for metal fragments and found none, although I didn't actually strain the oil.

We replaced the prop. The first replacement was used and we got what we paid for. The second was new and worked great. Ours was a 150 evinrude so I'm not sure our experience translates to a 3hp but as I said it sounds the same.

Quentin

06-17-2004 07:26 AM

Gregg, I'm pretty sure it's not the prop/hub although the symptoms are the same.

Good suggestion Bob -- why didn't I think of that???? :hehe:
Actually, I did consider calling Evinrude/OMC/Bombardier but the User Manual said to contact the dealer first.

The good news: the Evinrude Tech seems to have diagnosed the problem. He said there is a spring that fits over a gear and acts like a clutch. The spring is probably worn out and the gear may need replacing as well. He gave me the part numbers and said that I can probably do the job myself, but would have to get the parts from an authorized dealer as he is unable to sell the parts to me directly.

The bad news: the dealer that I called said that the gear is $155 and the spring is $35. Add in the cost of the O-ring and it brings the total cost to about $200. That's almost half of what I paid for the entire motor! What a scam!!! :mad: :mad: :mad: